"Heros? They are a dying breed... They try hard to just keep their head above the water. They struggle to keep that steady balance. The balance between righteousness and chaos. Now villains? You see, they are the smart ones. They know that the world just doesn't work that way. There is no balance, there is only chaos."
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♙Kai Hamilton♙
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Sometimes life is unpredictable, in Briagas, it's almost a requirement.
However, today, started pretty much as normal as possible.
"Hamilton, my office now."
A young man raises his head from the mountain of paperwork. His obsidian-colored hair waved a bit over his equally dark-colored eyes. He frowns for a second upon realizing who was calling him and lets out a sigh before standing.
It would appear he was in trouble... again.
The bullpen had been filled with overlapping voices, ringing phones, and moving bodies. At the loud voice that clearly yelled over the noise, a short hush fell over the area. A few heads raised and eyed him as he stood from his desk and walked over.
You see, this isn't the first time Kai has been singled out by the captain of the Briagas police department. It won't be the last for this week, nor even this month.
The reason?
Well, the reason is simple as common sense.
In Briagas, the powerful always win. And those in power have continued that way for years uninterrupted.
That was until Kai was instated as an officer 5 years ago.
Now to be fair, it didn't make him special by any means. He wasn't the first hero cop to rise against filth and corruption. There have been many shining stars that have risen only to be burned out like a faulty blub.
However, Kai Hamilton is something different than the others.
He was stubborn, even in the face of being pressed down under pressure.
He believed that people no matter how dark, have some semblance of mortality.
No matter how small it may be.
The loud slap of the folded newspaper hits against the oak desk of Captain Jonas Morris. His beady dark-colored eyes glared over at Hamilton. His slightly portly form sunk back in his chair as he lets out a snort. Jonas has been the police captain of this particular department for over 15 years, and without a doubt on his mind, these past few years have been his hardest. All due to the man across from him, the famed bloodhound of Briagas.
He taps a finger loudly on the newspaper in front of him. Hamilton was standing ramrod straight, arms folded behind his back, eyes trained on Morris.
"Read." Was Morris's only command before he pushes the paper closer to Kai.
Kai already knew what the paper was going to say but he read it anyway.
"The Bloodhound of Briagas strikes again. He clashes once again with the son of President, Lance Holloway of Holloway General Hospital. The exclusive story on the whole fiasco on page 12."
Jonas was nodding along as Kai read, his sneer getting larger as he goes. Once Kai finished, he then slammed his hand on the desk over the paper. The sound echoed loudly but neither man really responded. Jonas glares coldly at Kai, his nose flaring every so often in anger.
"Do you understand what the means?"
Kai smartly doesn't speak, it wasn't a question.
"Do you know he wanted to press charges against you?"
Kai's face didn't even flinch, however, his hands behind his back clenched ever so slightly. He knew very well that the father wanted to press charges.
"I had to talk to him. Practically begged him not to press charges on you."
Kai was as silent as a mouse. No visible expression on his face that indicated anything Jonas was saying was even impacting him.
"Tomorrow is the 15th Anniversary Charity Ball at Holloway General Hospital and they want some officers there. I trust I don't have to spell out the rest for you? You will be going there, you will play nice and you will personally apologize."
A small twitch of the corner of Kai's lips was the only outward tick that showed how he felt about that particular assignment. Jonas noticed it but said nothing, just tilted his head expectingly.
"Understood?"
A smile strained to Kai's lips before a stiff nod of his head. Jonas let out a mocking and dry laugh, turning his head away from Kai.
".Ha.. cocky runt. Fucking "bloodhound of Briagas"? Don't make me laugh." Jonas hisses and then waves his hand dismissively to Kai.
He was being dismissed like a scolded child but Kai clenches his teeth, nods once again to Jonas then walks out. Outside of the stuffy office, he lets out a deep sigh running a hand over his head and roughly scratching the back of his neck.
"That sounded like a rough time."
Kai's eyes slowly drifted open and up to the direction of the voice. A young woman with dark curly hair and dark-colored eyes. A small and soft smile on her heart-shaped face. Trailing behind her were two other officers both staring at him with equal pity and concern.
A slow smile blossomed on Kai's face as he took in the three. Completely masking the once bleak and dark expression that was once on his face.
"No different than normal, I'm afraid."
Rafeeqa El-Shah gives a Kai short nod. She was one of the few people who would dare to keep in contact with Kai at the station.
It wasn't a tightly held secret how the department feels about the infamous bloodhound of Briagas. Contrary to the popular belief of the general public, he is treated as an outcast by his department.
The rich and powerful control everything in this city and someone like Kai was nothing but a constant thorn that wouldn't go away. The cycle was never-ending but Kai never stopped. Even at the very real risk of being fired.
Some call him brave to try to throw himself against a clearly unfairly stacked system. Others called him arrogant for even daring. While the rare few love to watch him bare his fang is defiance.
It's all a very elaborate game.
A game that has been slowly grinding Kai down.
A hand pats heavily on his shoulder making his turn to one of the other people with Rafeeqa. A male who appeared a bit older with slicked-back dark hair and even darker eyes. Arthur Wells is a kind older cop who knows better even though he admires that drive Kai has.
Just like everyone else.
"Ah, Jonas is too harsh on you Kai. "
"More like he's trying to tame a wild dog. Don't you know not the bite that hand that feeds? You do know who the biggest donor to the police department is right?"
Kai doesn't even stop the dry laugh that tumbles from his mouth as he looks to the last person in the group. At this point as well Rafeeqa and Arthur are also looking at their last coworker. A man around the same age a Kai from his looks. Dark-colored skin, short dark hair, and stormy dark-colored eyes. An almost permanent scowl on his face.
"Jaivon..." Rafeeqa starts to speak, a warning in her tone.
Jaivon Watkins lets out a loud scoff and shakes his head before his eyes land on Kai.
"You two always defend him, even while he's making our lives harder."
Kai's mouth shuts with a click as his eyes drifted to the ground.
He was aware of his influence on the precinct. Trouble seems to be glued to the hip with him and where there was trouble, there was justice to be hand. However, that didn't mean he didn't understand his situation.
The police played a delicate role between the public and the elites of this city. Justice was merely a game that the powerful play with the weak.
An unfair and unbalanced game.
Suddenly the door to Jonas's office opens. His eye immediately lands on Kai and his group and an unfriendly smile forms on his face.
"Perfect. Watkins, you and your team will be going to check on a disturbance in the lower district on Park St. The new construction on the new apartment complex there has been getting a lot of stragglers in the area." He explained, "The owner, Handa Maro from Handa's Apartments, is there and he demanding a clear out of the area."
The team nodded except Kai who shifts uncomfortably.
"No questions? Good, go to it." He said, dismissing them before disappearing into his office.
The team packed into their patrol car and started their way towards the lower district. Kai's eyes never left the window even as the rest of his team talked. The scenery that passed morphed from lush greenery and clean streets to sudden trash and broken down buildings with dying grasslands. Everyone who lived in Briagas knew immediately when they've reached the lower district.
Unkept roads, trash scattered about, sky-high crime rate and no one seems to care. The lower district was what everyone calls "The Slums". It's been that way since the city's sudden surge in prosperity. The wedge that divided the social class became a crater that divided the city as it is now.
It was a brutal back and forth fight. The weak would rise up repeatedly to try to strike against the rich and powerful only to be stuck down.
It was around the time as well that this 'game' idea sprouted up.
The unfair and unbalanced game of justice. That the only real way to win is to be worst than the devil.
Kai hates it.